THE WOMAN'S WORLD.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLI, Issue 12546, 13 April 1904, Page 2 (Supplement)

THE WOMAN'S WORLD.

A NOVEL PIPE-RACK.

The pipe-rack sketched here is made from cardboard, and covered with white velvet, trimmed with scarlet- and green. To make 11, procure two pieces of cardboard, half a yard of white velvet, one-eighth of scarlet-, a. small piece of green, some white sateeen, 12 gold and six silver sequins, and one yard of ribbon. Commence by cutting two pieces of card the shape shown in the sketch, and measuring IU inches by nine inches. Cover

one of them with the white velvet, and the other with sateen. Take the scarlet velvet, and make a band two and a-half inches wide; sew this across the palette. Take 1 the green velvet, and make three small gathered loops ; sew these across the scarlet velvet band, with two gold and one silver sequin at each side of the gathered loops. Now sew on the other card, previously covered with sateen, take the ribbon and make a bow at each end, and sew to the palette. A LAVENDER BAG IN MUSLIN. Those who appreciate the pleasant- odour of lavenderand who docs not like the good old English perfume?—will be glad to have our second sketch this week, which shows a muslin bag to hold the dried blossom. Such, little bags are more easily made than almost any other kind of sachet, and they are as welcome at bazaars as they are when used for small gifts. The simplest way of making lavender bags is to buy a plain sack of book muslin, which is sold ready traced for working. There is a deep heading, as in any other bag, and a white cord draw-string, finished at the ends with tassels, serves to, apparently, close the top. In reality, there should be a serviceable length of cord, which

S can be drawn up tightly, then twisted two or j tin times round, and tied firmly. Unless I the opening is well closed, the lavender will I soon find its way out, and will crumble to t dust in a very short time. A good plan is | to tie a piece of narrow tape, or line white J (wine or cord, tightly round the neck d* the j bag, to close it and to do the real work of. securing the contents:. Then, over 1 his, j should be placed a piece of ornamental riblion. which can be tied in a smart Dow in the front of the bag and secured with ti few S stitches. A spray or two of 'avender may ! lie traced for embroidery on the mus'iu, and | by using ribbon of the correct colour a. wonj derfully lifelike copy may be made of the actual blossoms. The bow, which lorns a very important part of the design, may be arranged by laying down real ribb.m en the lacing, and, catching 111 to the ntustin, wish tiny stitches, matching it exactly in colour. Pale pink would look exceedingly pretty near the heliotrope flowers. The stent. 5 aid such leaves as are shown should be fallowed with a few stitches of bluish-green silk. SHOULD WOMEN SMOKE? Among the mass of opinion, conjecture, foreboding, and prophecy. ! lino no single fact for our guidance—no single examole of the effect of smoking on a woman's constitution and character (says Sarah Grand, in the Daily Chronicle). I. personally, entered by accident upon the experiment of smoking. 1 was lunching with a friend at her father's house. Ourselves, her father, and two other gentlemen, composed the parly. After luncheon my friend suggested that we should go into the library and have cigarettes with our coffee. In the library, she said to me: "Do smoke." " Hut i don't smoke," 1 answered. "Well, but just, to keep me. in countenance!" Of course 1 took a cigarette and lighted it. This was between 1893-4, just after .1 had published "The Heavenly wins." Our companions were all three distinguished men ; their talk was delightful, and as I listened I smoked without much consciousness of what I was doing. The cigarette had no effect upon me whatever at the moment, either pleasurable or the contrary. But a few days later, while I was talking to one of my stepsons—who, by the way, was not smoking at the time—l was seized with an importunate craving for tobacco. "1 should like to smoke, ' i said. "Well, smoke, then," he answered, and handed me Ins cigarette-case. And from that time 1 liavt smoked, more or 'ess—generally less —my average being from two to four cigarettes 0 day. I smoked at first not because 1 oared particularly fox the act, but in order to be sociable. 'it became my custom to have cigarettes biought in with the coffee at: dessert, and to sit and chat instead of breaking up the party and separating, the ladies to yawn in the dtawingroom, leaving the men to such ideas as more wine_ might etu'ender. Thus, in my mind, smoking become associated with pretty still-lite pictures iff' dessert on the dark polish of a Chippendale table, with shaded lights, and flowers, with many a brilliant mind that gave of its best, and with the close sympathy of many a loyal heart, that expanded under the gentle, gonial iidltiecce. At first my cigarette v, as the toy of the dinner-table, but soon it began to"creep in at other times, and insensibly as I came more and more undet its influence, the old occupations natural to women los-; their charm for me. and were set aside. . . !Hit 1 found that 1 could no longer smoke without inhaling, and soon also i began to smoke more and more, until at hist it occurred to me that inhaling had made smoking a pernicious habit, to which 1 should become a slave if I did not break myself of it at once. So I gave it up. And it was as if (continues Madam Grand) I had cast out ail evil spirit which had been keeping all the better' influences of my life at a distance. Plain sewing became a solace to me again. 1 delighted in my neglected embroideries. Alter work it was. vest and, refreshment to see that my house was spick and span, my household comfortable and happy. And, best «f all, my music, which had left me, came back —"the sounds that cannot lie lot all their sweet beguiling, the language we need fathom not, but only bear and feel." Theresuit of my observation of women who snjoko has been \ery much the same as my own experience of the habit. So long as the cigarette is treated as a plaything, taken up only at odd moments, and not missed when cast aside, it does no barm ; but when it becomes ,ik necessity, it is dangerous.

PRETTY COIFFURES FOR ALL. . The girl with the high forehead should wear her hair drawn low over her brow. If she has a low, smooth, white brow, she should brush her hair well off the forehead. A Madonna-like face requires the hair parted in the middle. The girl with an intellectual brow, „ or a fair share of youthful beauty, can afford to draw her hair back in loose waves, sans pompadour or parts, and coil it on the neck. For elderly matrons the pompadour is dignified and stately, and it seems to increase the height of stout women. The round, shapely head looks well with a soft puff of hair at the nape of the neck. Every woman should study her own style. If she. looks best with her hair low, then low she should wear it, though every other woman in the land is piling her hair 011 the top of her head. A wise woman never overdresses her hair if it is beautiful of itself. MATCHMAKING BY MUSIC. A talented musician proposes to solve the difficulty some bachelors have in choosing a wife by "trial by music." He suggests that the young woman under observation be given opportunities to hear the music of many of the greatest composers, and that the impressions of the various compositions upon her should be carefully noted. If she prefers waltz-music, and. above all, Strauss' intoxicating strains, she is certainly frivolous. If she loves Beethoven, she is artistic, but not practical. It is easy to understand that any girl preferring Gounod must, lie romantic and tenderhearted. It is hard on Wagner that a love of his music is a distinct proof of vanity. RECIPES FOR THE TABLE. Apricot Custard: Line a pie-dish with some nice pastry. Make a good custard, nicely flavoured, and pour into the dish. Cook slowly. When it is beginning to set, stii in carefully half a tin of apricots, and then bake till firm. This may be eaten hot or cold. Beef Cakes: Pound some underdone beef with a little ham or streaky bacon. Season with mustard, pepper, and salt, and a little finely-minced onion. Mix all thoroughly together, and make into small cakes, dip into beaten egg, and then into breadcrumbs, flour lightly, and fry in deep fat to a goldenbrown. Serve with good thick gravy. Cheese Croutons: Cut in two some small dinner-rolls, and remove the crumb. Place the crusts on a baking-tin in the oven to get very crisp. Moisten some of the crumb with j milk and a little melted butter, flavour with ! grated cheese, salt, mustard, and cayenne till 1 it is quite savoury. Make it hot in a sauce- [ pan. Put some of the mixture into each crisp ! crust, sprinkle with grated cheese, and brown I in the oven. Serve very hot.

Pineapple Cup : Pour the juice off a tin of pineapple, cut the fruit into .small pieces, and put into a howl. Pour over a quart of boiling water. When cold, add sugar to taste and the juice, together with two bottles of lemonade.

Lemon Blancmange: Soak an ounce •of gelatine in a quart of mil for two hours, add to it a strip of very thin lemon-peel, sugar to sweeten, add IK blanched almonds chopped very fine. Simmer all together until the gelatine is dissolved and the milk flavoured. Strain into a wet mould, set aside until firm I and cold, turn out, and serve with good cus- ; tard poured round. Swiss Eggs: Take two fresh eggs and three tablespoonfuls of grated cheese, one tablespoonfui of tinely-chopped parsley, pep- ! per and salt. Spread some butter on a small | lire proof plate, sprinkle over half he cheese, I then break the eggs gently on the. top. S Sprinkle over salt and pepper. Mix the rest ! of the cheese with the parsley, and sprinkle over the eggs. Put into a'moderate oven ' until the eggs are set. (• Cornflour Cake: Take six ounces of corni flour, three ounces of castor sugar, three 1 ounces of butter, one teaspoouful of bakingI powder, two eggs ,a.ml one spoonful of milk. ! Beat the butter to a cream : mix with it the I sugar and eggs and milk. Mix cornflour and i baking-powder, and add those by degrees, | beating the mixture quickly for 10 minutes, i Bake in a brisk oven.

I Salmon Rissoles: Put one tin of the best salmon into a basin, taking out a little of the I liquid and removing all skin and bone. Add a tablespoonfui of fine breadcrumbs, pepper, i and salt. Bind with two well-beaten eggs. ; Divide into round cutlets or balls, roll in fine j breadcrumbs, and fry in boiling fat. Garj nish with lemon and parsley. ! Vegetable Cutlets: Take a tablespoonfui j of parsley, chopped ,and the same quantity i of -minced onion, one tablespoonfui of I cooked beetroot, cut small, and a little salt ! and pepper. Mix with haTf a pound of breadj crumbs, two chopped hard-boiled eggs, and ian ounce of butter. When all the ingredients are thoroughly well mixed, moisten with two ! well-beaten eggs. Make into cutlets, and fry | in butter. j Swiss Potatoes: Take as many potatoes as are required as near the same shape as • possible. Wash them well, and bake. When done, cut a bit off the top of each, and scoop out the potato; mash the pulp with a little milk, butter, and season very highly with grated cheese and cayenne. Stir in a little chopped parsley, and beat till light. Return the pulp to rue skins, letting it rise a little over the top, and rub butter over it. Bake a light brown, and serve very hot. FOR THE BUSY WOMAN'S SCRAPBOOK. Salt, used in sweeping carpets, keeps out moths. Blue thejvater you boil your clothes in; it will keep them in good colour. A hot cloth around the mould will help jelly to come from it without sticking. When staining a, floor, don't forget to apply the stain with the grain of the wood. Rub articles stained from eggs, baking custards, etc., with salt. The brown, stains will come oh' in a short time. Adding a sprinkle of powdered sage gives a good flavour to pork, whether it be roast, chops, or tenderloin. To clean bone, ivory, or pearl knifehandles, use inoist, fine salt. Polish afterwards with a dry, soft cloth. To clean brass or copper, use sweet-oil and putty-powder. Afterwards wash with hot water and soap, and polish. When washing up, put a cloth on a tray for the things to drain on, instead of the nnk. It. will prevent them from being chipped or broken. A quarter of a yard of black velveteen makes the. most satisfactory brush for silk that can be. had. It removes the dust perfectly, and will not injure the fabric. Fungus in cellars which are danv> often causes a musty and unhealthy smell. This may be destroyed by placing boxes of quicklime about to absorb the damp. Shoud flavouring he forgotten in a pudding or cake, the fault may be remedied by nibbing (he desired extract over the outside as soon as it is taken from the oven. Wear an apron of white oilcloth when washing dishes or clothes. This will save the dress and prevent: the wearer getting wet. Afterwards clean the apron with a clean damp cloth. A greasy hearth, should not be made wet in order to clean it. Rub it over well with dry hearthstone, then brush it off, and the hearth will be white and clean, with wo signs of grease. Cabbages, greens, cauliflower, spinach, sprouts, and all kinds of vegetables of this class, require to be steeped in salt and water j before be.inc put on the fire to cook, as this j will bring (nit any insects that are, between the leaves. Onions should lie in cold water J for half an hour before being cooked. WALNUTS IN COOKING. j The walnut occupies a big place in the j modern kitchen. As a pickle it runs a very i good second to the onion, and it is walnut | vinegar that gives so marked a llavoui to j many favourite curries. As a sweet, too, j the walnut has much usefulness, being very j tempting when candied or in cake. i For walnut cake cream half a. pound of : butter with half a pound of sugar, then ; add a quarter of a pound of flour, and mix | gently in. Add a tablespoonfui each of baki ing powder and vanilla essence, half a pound ■ of chopped peeled walnuts, find, last of all, j the beaten whites of eight eggs. Bake in a moderate oven for one and a half hours. The i oven door should be opened as little as pos- ' sible, and should be closed very gently, as the cake sinks very easily. | In Cashmere walnut oil, obtained from the albumen of the seed ot the tree by reducing them to a pulp, is largely used in cookery, but the tag is too strong for European [ palates,.